Halo: The Rise of Heroes
by furysflame666
Summary: This elite group of Spartan III's has been reduced to a mere number of two. Fighting for Earth, can they possibly stand against a Covenant force of thousands?
1. Chapter 1

I don't own Halo, obviously, or any of the characters Bungie or Eric Nylund created. I only own Spartan-113 and Spartan-116. So, enjoy.

* * *

_A secret faction of Spartan-III's has been made. Not even their sponsor, Colonel Ackerson, knows about this special elite unit. Made decades after the first, little known Spartan-III's were launched, they had no margin of error. For years they had been worked, chiseled into as fine warriors as the legendary second assemblage of Spartans. Now, half a decade after they had been set loose on the enemy, the alien menace, the covenant, only two remain; the best and most efficient two-man group of their time. With their teamwork and still flaring attitudes, a trait unknown in Spartans, they might just turn the tide of this war._

* * *

Spartan-116 leapt from the cliff as the mine exploded. She hit the ground hard, but still managed to roll and absorb some of the impact. Her shield bar fluttered, setting off the audible alarm. The crack of a sniper rifle was heard as her partner, Spartan-113 took out whatever Covenant reinforcements were left.

At the bottom of this crevice lay the other half of the two-man team. He was leaning against a boulder, rifle aimed at a 45 degree angle. It still smoldered at the barrel.

When 116's threat indicator was clear, she stood up. She could see her shield bar had refilled itself. A moment later, 113 got up and joined her.

They said nothing, for they did not want to give away their position by using the COM. 116 signaled for her comrade to follow her deeper into the cavern.

These two Spartans had been on this planet for three days, after their ride had been destroyed en route to the surface. They had landed hard, and already had injuries even before they started their mission. Spartan-113 walked with a limp. He had fractured a bone in his right leg, but didn't complain much after the first contacts had been spotted. Even with the disadvantage, 113 kept his number of kills almost equal to his superior, Spartan-116.

Spartan-113 was one of the best snipers 116 had ever seen. She believed his prowess was in the same league of the Spartan-II's Linda, known for deadly accuracy. Of all the Spartan-III's, their secret with the secret group, 113 was elite.

There was no envy from Spartan-116. She never liked those rifles anyway. If she could, she would always go up close and personal with the Covenant bastards that had killed her brothers and sisters. The assault rifle and pistol was her best weapons combination; however, she was known to use Covenant plasma rifles if she had the chance.

This collection of races, called the Covenant by human forces, was responsible for killing millions in only a few decades time. World after world they had glassed, for no known reason. These two remaining Spartan-III's had no love for them.

The cavern in which they walked now was sealed off from the land above. With their enhanced sense, they were able to navigate efficiently. 116's threat indicator was clear. No new contacts meant that they could regroup and pick the next course of action.

She rose her hand, indicating 113 to stop. 116 looked around, making positive that there were no enemies, and finally sat down on the ground. Spartan-113 joined her.

"How many round do you have left in that thing?" she asked over the COM.

"Enough for now." he stated simply. Spartan-113 opened the cartridge of the rifle and reloaded. "How about you? You go through ammo like water."

"I'm not so great." She pulled out her assault rifle, and shoved a new clip of ammunition into the gun. "Only a few more left. I should have stolen a plasma rifle when I had the opportunity."

"Then you would've been killed by that mine you triggered." Spartan-113 replied, checking his sidearm.

"Hey, did I say I stole it?" 116 shot back, pulling another weapon out. It had crystalline needles jutting out of the top of it. She made the age-old Spartan "smile" gesture, "I did grab this though."

"Did anyone ever tell you you're crazy?" He asked and put a hand to his helmet and sighed.

"Only you, my friend. No one's talked to us like this for a long time." She said with happiness, although the truth hurt them both.

Even after the officials at ONI had perfected the process of training Spartans, their squad was still dead. It seemed hope was lost; the years had taken their toll.

This particular group of Spartan-III's had been born at their training facility; warriors since birth. At this stage, they were biochemically enhanced, making them faster and smarter. Seventeen infants had died in this process: their bodies did not take to the chemicals. When they were mere toddlers, their soldier-in-training were worked with coordination exercises, teamwork challenges, and muscle drills. Trainers allowed them little rest.

As soon as they were able to walk, they were taught to evade. The lessons came endlessly, in either tactics or basic creative-thinking skills. When the children were four years of age, the physical training began.

Always in two to five man teams, they were thrown into the wilderness, taught to survive and flourish. Their weapons training came a year later. Every kind of gun, Covenant or otherwise, was open to them, and they were told to be proficient in every one of them. These two factors were honed until the age of ten.

Even at this stage, their appearances looked older than what they should have been. Their faces showed the features of fourteen year olds, even though they hadn't hit puberty. They would not get that chance. The chemicals they had been enhanced with suppressed hormones, giving them a clear head to fight. They were then introduced with miniature suits of MJOLNIR armor, and sent against active Marines, each unit using live rounds.

This first mission was a success. The Spartan-III group was then shipped off to their first Covenant-human battle. This, again, was a flawless victory.

But, as the Covenant grew wary of these new kinds of "Demons," they sent more and more reinforcements to each battle. Even these super-soldiers could not stand twelve to one odds.

As the years went on, the group slowly lost cohesion. Only a few exceptional Spartans, this team including 113 and 116, stayed together. This weakness was exploited to the fullest on a planet called Zephyr, named for its eternal westward winds. The Covenant set highly explosive mines all over the planet. The special group that retained its strength warned the others about the plan, but the rash actions of their teammates had destroyed them all.

There were five Spartans left from that mission, all from the group that saw the trap coming. This team was called "Bushi" a Japanese term for warrior.

Team Bushi was the epiphany of power for the human side of the war, even though their presence was never really leaked. They had helped win multiple planetary battles, not losing any of this tightly-formed group.

But then a tragedy as horrendous as the Zephyr slaughter occurred.

On a world called Vulcan, there were huge military bases. Although not as favored as Reach, it was still used as a prime repair and shield planet. For reasons still unknown, the Covenant came with one of the largest fleets ever seen by humankind.

Three Spartans were killed. Devastating, but the remaining two were able to escape before the planet was destroyed; they were reassigned at the last moment.

That was four years ago.

And they still felt the pain.

They sat in silence for minutes, cleaning and rechecking their weapons. There was no estimate on when evac would arrive to extract them.

The mission was to defend a highly classified facility, or, if failing to do so, collect its data so the Covenant could not get to it. After their Pelican drop ship was destroyed, it was abundantly clear that the latter action would have to be performed. They had found the structure, rooted out the alien soldiers, and extracted the crucial files. A high powered explosive was used to level the grounds.

Two days passed and no reinforcements had been sent.


	2. Chapter 2

I obviously don't own Halo, but I DO own Spartan-113 and 116. Everything else is Bungie/Microsoft/whatever. XD

* * *

Spartan-116 looked around warily. She thought she had heard something. Her companion also perked up, grabbing his pistol and leveling it. 116's threat indicator suddenly had a red blob at the edge. The contact didn't seem to be traveling in a group. A lone Grunt from the previous engagement, perhaps? Maybe, but, not likely. As far as the Covenant was concerned, when it rained troops, it _deluged_. 

Sure enough, the methane-breather emerged from a corner, and spotted the two Spartans. 116 was already moving by then; however. Before the creature could yelp in surprise, the human smashed its skull in with the butt of her rifle. It crumpled to the ground.

She pulled the body out of the way. If reinforcements saw it, it might give away their location. Spartan-116 motioned her comrade to join her.

"I think it's obvious this place isn't safe anymore." she said grimly.

"When was it…?" Spartan-113 mumbled. After a pause, he continued, "I'll check for any evac transmissions. Maybe they've noticed we're missing."

He rummaged through UNSC radio traffic surrounding the planet. Either the fleet had been destroyed or the battle had been abandoned. Never a good sign. He relayed this to Spartan-116; she sighed.

"Well, have any good ideas?" She looked to the ceiling of the cave, thinking.

"We _could_, in theory, wait for help to arrive, assuming the Covenant doesn't root us out of this hole before then. Or," He pulled out his sniper rifle, "We could jack one of their drop ships."

Inside her helmet, Spartan-116 smiled. Of course, she had been thinking those options as well; she simply needed to see what her companion was pondering. The latter option sounded great to her.

"Well, there _is_ a problem with the Covenant language and tech we can't crack." 116 looked to her teammate.

He stood there, surely contemplating different ways around the problem. Without an AI that could infiltrate and decipher the aliens' script and computer systems, they wouldn't get very far.

"There must be a UNSC prowler nearby. We could radio them for pickup." 113 suggested.

"You better hope to God there's one left," She started down the path again. With a wave of her hand, 113 followed, "Let's take a peek up top."

"There might be drop ships dumping more troops," He warned, "Or even removing soldiers to prepare for the glassing of the planet."

"Either way, we win." She smiled eagerly.

High-risk missions such as these always excited them. Not to the point where they would make brash decisions, but it certainly retained their attention.

The two-man team trekked throughout the cavern trying to find an opening. However, the ceiling was thick, and it took them a quarter of an hour to find a hold large enough to fit the MJOLNIR-armor clad warriors through. They stopped, seeing the light filtering from the crack.

"That'll do," Spartan-116 deduced. She saw that the hole was made at an angle, so it was not completely on the roof of the cavern. That would make it much easier to reach. So, she started her climb, digging into natural crevices with her limbs, "At my six, 113, check for threats."

113's acknowledgement light burned green. He grabbed his pistol and scanned the room.

When Spartan-116 reached the crevice, she listened for any contacts. Both her threat indicator and her senses read clear. She popped her head out, but what she saw did not please her. She was in the midst of at least one hundred slumbering Grunts.

"Oh_ shit_." She whispered and dropped down into the hole. Spartan-113 faced her, tried to speak, but she cut him off, "No communication _whatsoever_. We've got gas-suckers."

There was a slight shift in 113's head. He didn't understand why a few Grunts would be a problem. Then, Spartan-116 made a wide gesture with her hands, and he understood. She made a quick snap with her hand, then, and began to run down the tunnel. With only the slightest hesitation, Spartan-113 followed.

They ran for approximately five minutes until Spartan-116 abruptly stopped.

"Contacts." She said almost inaudibly, though Spartan-113 was able to hear it clear enough.

116 glanced at her threat indicator. Six _huge_ blips appeared. Though, she heard them before she saw them.

"Hunter pairs," Spartan-113 spoke bitterly, almost as a curse, "Too many for us to handle."

Spartan-116 nodded, and motioned for them to take cover, for she had an idea. A private COM link was opened. No external speaking could be heard.

"Ready your sniper rifle. We'll do it just like before." Spartan-116 commanded. She dropped the pack she had been carrying and opened it. Inside held two LOTUS antitank mines, "They _are_ walking tanks, aren't they?"

Spartan-113 made the smile gesture over his faceplate. He hefted his sniper rifle.

116 picked the places for the mines, both in the center of where she hoped the Hunters would walk, a few meters apart. She took cover afterward, further up along the path that she hoped the enemies would take.

The cave kept dead quiet, save for the heavy footsteps of the Hunters and the sound of their armor plates grinding together. It was dark, narrow and uneven where Spartan-116 had placed the mines. They couldn't be noticed until it was too late.

She saw them then. Gigantic, twelve foot tall behemoths stomped into view, luckily not on their guard. Probably because they hadn't found enemies yet. Spartan-116 could see which two Hunters belonged to each pair, the two separated from the next couple ever so slightly. Their fuel rod cannons remained unlit and their shields lowered. The human saw the blue armor that encased them, but more importantly, the bright orange pieces of flesh that were exposed. That was what 113 would be hitting.

Once more, she checked her weapons. Their ammo counters were full. She had two fragmentation grenades and three Covenant plasma grenades. These would come in handy.


	3. Chapter 3

I don't own Halo people XD Just Spartan-116 and 113. Enjoy, and comments/reviews are welcome.

* * *

They had already passed Spartan-113's hiding place when she looked up. Not long before the firefight ensued. Just barely, she could see that her comrade had his sights on the slowest Hunter in the back, one that might survive the blast of the mine. The barrel of the rifle followed the movements of the creature, as f 113 had linked up with the Hunter's mind and anticipated its steps.

The Hunters were already in tight formation from the narrow path in which the mines were placed. It was the perfect position.

The flash of light that revealed the triggering of the mine set Spartan-116 into action. She dashed from her concealed location and pulled out a fragmentation grenade. 116 heard the grunts of the beasts as the mine detonated. There were yells of anguish as the lead Hunter collapsed, catching the full force of the explosive. Its bond brother enraged, the other Hunters moved into a defensive position. They formed a circle, holding their shields out to stop any projectile short of a rocket.

However, where Spartan-116 had placed the second mine was just inside this circle. As the Hunters yelled and ranted, they began to move and stomp in position. One unlucky east triggered the second mine, slicing into the flesh of every Hunter's back, splattering the florescent orange blood everywhere.

The Hunter that had stepped on the mine fell. Four left. Spartan-116 pulled the pin on the grenade she had been holding even as the second mine went off. By the time it reached them and exploded, the second Hunter hadn't even dropped completely to the ground.

No bodies added to the two on the ground that time. The grenade tore and the Hunters' shields, but only a fraction of the shrapnel was able to get through their armor, creating survivable wounds. And completely pissed them off.

The four creatures turned to Spartan116, and three started to charge their fuel rod cannons. Those guns could drain and break her shields if they all connected. It wouldn't be something she could live through.

The Hunter that was in the back couldn't get a clear shot, so it stayed back to wait. And, it was able to hear the slight clack of an adjustment on a sniper rifle. It turned just in time to get a sniper round punched through its exposed neck. Orange blood sprayed on its comrades and landed in a heap.

Two of the remaining Hunters halted the charging of their weapons and turned to the fallen behemoth. They saw the hidden sniper, and began towards him. Spartan-116 was already prepared for this. She primed a plasma grenade and, with a considerable swing, attached it to one of the Hunter's back, where the flesh showed. When it exploded, the affected Hunter miraculously stayed upright. The two were confused at which way to turn.

By this time, the untouched Hunter had fired its fuel rod cannon at Spartan-116. She leapt out of the way in time, but her shields still drained a quarter. When she recovered from the roll, the Hunter was running at her at a surprising speed, hefting its giant shield up to crush her.

She dove again, this time rolling behind the walking tank and shoved a fragmentation grenade into the flesh of its back. The human jumped back to watch the grenade detonate inside the beast, but it still did not fall. Was it thirst for vengeance for its lost bond brother?

Spartan-116 didn't care at the moment. She spun around to see the two other Hunters, surely a pair due to the cohesion of the charge, coming for her. Certain that her _own_ comrade would have her back; she turned to face this new threat.

A different tactic was being used this time; she turned and ran further through the passage. The Hunters, already screaming for the blood of the "demon," as the Covenant called Spartans, gladly pursued her.

The female human heard a satisfying crack from Spartan-113's sniper rifle. She knew the Hunter that had fired the cannon at her was dead. However, she continued running.

"113, stay put. I'll drag the Hunters down further, lose them and double back to meet with you." Her voice was even, though she was still running for her life.

"Roger." Spartan-113 acknowledged. He clicked his COM off for the moment.

Spartan-116 heard the charging of the fuel rod cannons again, and looked around to find cover. At this particular spot, though, there were no boulders or formations strong enough to hold the shots. Then, she spotted the same hole she had found earlier.

What would it be, two Hunters or over one hundred Grunts and God knows what else? She was very aware that the chances of survival against the two Hunters here was slim. But, what would happen if she jumped out of this cave? Both options looked grim. She opened the COM channel with Spartan-113 again.

"Change in plans; I hit a snag. Pick up your gear and meet me at the gas-sucker opening ASAP. It's not far." She didn't even wait for him to reply. The COM snapped off at her command and she flipped around to face the bond brothers.

They fired their cans simultaneously while she was still turning. She saw the flash of green plasma and rolled forward, barely missing the twin blasts by ducking under them. Her shield bar was almost to the point of the audible alarm. Unfortunately, the Hunters weren't done.

The two bond brothers pulled back form their weapons' fire and lunged at the form of Spartan-116 still coming out of the roll. In perfect unison, they raised their shield arms to crush the human.

Using every abdominal muscle, and pushing back with her legs, Spartan-116 went back the way she came. As she rolled backward, the Hunters struck the ground where she had been previously, effectively crushing it inward half a meter.

The Hunter on the Spartan's right was the quicker of the two. It recovered from its own strike and swiped at the human, using her form like a ball to a baseball bat. Her shields drained, and she was smashed into the cavern's wall by the force of the blow. She tasted the blood and biofoam in her mouth as her suit tried to patch her wounds for her. A ripping pain burned throughout her body, and it felt as if her chest cavity had completely collapsed. The pain was good, though; it meant she was still alive.

Her training kicked in and she struggled to grab her assault rifle. With her other hand, she snatched another plasma grenade. She willed her legs to support her weight, and dove from the Hunters' strikes again. The pain in doing so tore into her, almost causing her to cry out, but she restrained it.

When she was clear of them, Spartan-116 stoop up from the roll and hurled a grenade to one of the Hunters. It stuck to the back of its neck. A perfect shot. In addition to this, she emptied half of clip of ammo into it before the explosive went off. She knew it would most likely not fall, and she readied a fragmentation grenade.

A sudden blast broke the cavern's silence after the grenade exploded. The round from 113's rifle tore at the wounded beast's neck, and it tumbled.

Seeing this opportunity to finish the fight, Spartan-116 threw the frag grenade that was already live, and primed her last plasma grenade. When the first went off, the second was already stuck to the flesh of the beast.

This still did not down the Hunter. It charged at 116, hefting its shied up again to strike at her. She stayed put, and waited for the-

-The sniper rifle went off again, and the Hunter fell forward at her feet.

Spartan-116 fell backward onto her haunches, breathing heavily. Spartan-113 slung his sniper rifle over his shoulder and went to his comrade.

"Get nicked?" he said, opening the med kit 116's pack contained. 13 had carried it with him when he came to her COM call.

"Ever get hit with a 50 cal round?" Her voice was slightly hoarse. She clutched her stomach, "That's what it feels like."

113 retrieved a can of biofoam from the kit. He handed it to his CO and she inserted it in one of the MJOLNIR armor's ports. She easily emptied the container.

"Can you fight?" Spartan-113 asked when she was finished.

"Do you even need to question?" 116 shot back. There wasn't as much venom as playfulness in her tone. It was confirmed when she made the smile gesture over her faceplate.

Spartan-113 was only slightly amazed. After years of being with 116, her endurance and spirit were well known to him. She had been damaged worse than this, and she still showed their old squads her amazing wit and fire. It was as if that attitude blocked all of the pain from 116's injuries. 113 made a note to himself that he would ask her about this the next down time they had.


End file.
